Senate voting reform will cause surge in informal votes, Labor warns

A Turnbull government plan to reform Senate voting would result in an extra 800,000 informal votes, a Labor analysis has warned.

An internal ALP document seen by Fairfax Media argues that if Senate voting rules are changed so that voters must number from one to six "above the line", there will be a rise in informal votes at the upcoming federal election.

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Superannuation contributions, tax reform and changes to Senate voting laws are just some of what's on the agenda as politicians begin two sitting weeks in Canberra. Political reporter Gareth Hutchens explains.

The proposed change is supposed to prevent micro parties from "gaming the system" through preference deals, such as the one that saw Motoring Enthusiast Ricky Muir elected in 2013 with just 0.5 per cent of the vote in Victoria.

The Labor analysis, prepared by Senator Sam Dastyari, argues that if the reform is rushed through Parliament in time for the election due this year, the Australian Electoral Commission will "not have enough time or funding to educate the electorate about the biggest change to voting requirements in the Senate for more than 30 years".

Amid reports that the government is close to finalising a deal with the Greens and independent senator Nick Xenophon to pass the reform, the paper warns that informal voting in the Senate would jump to almost 10 per cent.

This is based on an analysis of the the last time Senate voting was changed, in 1984, which allowed voters to cast their ballot by just voting "one" for a party or Senate group "above the line" instead of numbering all the candidates below.

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It argues that the average Senate informal vote since 1984 has been 3.5 per cent, while in the 10 years before that it was almost 10 per cent.

Senator Dastyari, who has been leading Labor's pushback on the reforms, along with the party's Senate leaders Penny Wong and Stephen Conroy, described the proposed changes as a "gerrymander masquerading as transparency".

"There is nothing wrong with sensible Senate reform, but a backroom deal to squeeze our political opponents represents some of the worst practices of Australian politics," Senator Dastyari said.

"Frankly, it's hard to see how there's sufficient time to adequately reform the system and make sure the community are brought in as part of that process."

Outgoing frontbencher Gary Gray, who announced his retirement last week, was on a cross-parliamentary committee that called for an overhaul of preference deals in 2014.

The government could introduce a bill on voting reform as early as this week when Parliament resumes in Canberra.

It would then go to a parliamentary committee for scrutiny, but will not have much time if it is to pass both houses in time to give Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull the option of calling an early double dissolution election - with the new rules in place - by May 11.

On Sunday, new Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said a double dissolution was still on the table.

"If [the Senate] becomes inoperable, we have a constitutional right to go to a double dissolution and we will always keep that option up our sleeve," he told Sky News.